


To Build a Home

by jamesstruttingpotter



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Gen, Kid Fic, roy is olicity's child already lets be real, sara lives because we're gonna pretend the writers aren't awful
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-28
Updated: 2015-01-07
Packaged: 2018-03-03 22:46:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2890778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jamesstruttingpotter/pseuds/jamesstruttingpotter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five years after donning the hood for the first time, Oliver figures things have evened out pretty nicely. QC is under control, the city's never been safer, and his love life is (for once) not a mess. </p><p>Then, a mouthy seven year old with big grey eyes and a healthy streak of rebellion enters the picture.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I couldn't get rid of this plot all of a sudden, and it's been done a lot by other writers but hopefully this is still an entertaining take on the idea. I don't know yet whether this will be a continuous story or a series of oneshots, but either way, I hope you enjoy reading!

"Um... guys?"

Oliver knew immediately, with zero hesitation, that as soon as he turned around, he would feel a migraine settle in. Felicity was rarely hesitant, not after five years of working with Team Arrow and two years of dating him, in particular, but the brief pause between her two words was heavy with trepidation.

Nevertheless, he exchanged a quick glance with Digg and turned around. Felicity was standing at the entrance of Verdant, fingers of one hand worrying the strap of her purse. The other hand was holding the shoulder of a young boy.

Right on cue, Oliver's temples began to pound.

"Felicity," Digg said, voice measured, "who's this?"

The kid retreated even more deeply into his red hoodie, scowling. Felicity ran her hand down from his shoulder to his back, patting comfortingly. "This is Roy," she replied. "Roy, this is Oliver, and this is John."

"Why..." Oliver found himself unable to phrase the question.

Felicity readjusted the strap of her bag. "Well, I was doing some grocery shopping and I found him, um..."

"I was gonna put it back," Roy grumbled, scuffing a beat up sneaker against the smooth wood floors. 

"You took a bite out of it. No one wants a bitten apple." Her tone was gentle. Oliver's eyebrows hiked higher up his forehead.

"Alright, so... does he need help getting back home?" He sounded a little sharper than he intended to be, and Roy's scowl intensified. 

Felicity bit her lip. "Well, that's the thing."

Digg leaned against the bar, arms crossed. "Why do I get the feeling that this thing isn't gonna be too simple?"

"Okay, well..." She took a deep breath and Oliver couldn't help a small smile from surfacing as she launched into an impressive ramble. "I was at the supermarket, right? And I was just minding my own business, grabbing some plums or whatever, when suddenly there's a whole bunch of yelling. Turns out that Roy here stole a few of the apples and the manager was getting really mad at him. So I might have told her that Roy's my kid, and next thing I knew the manager was threatening to kick us both out so I just left, right, and I was fully intending on driving him back to his house so his parents could give him a firm lecture on how it's wrong to steal things that aren't yours - well yeah, obviously, you can't steal your own things - but then he wouldn't tell me where he lives and I knew you two were waiting for me so we could - " here her eyes went wide and she quickly rushed on - "do our  _jobs_ , of course, what else would we be doing in a nightclub - "

"It's eleven in the morning," Roy pointed out, looking up at her from under his hood.

"Well, you know, Saturdays are always busy," Felicity said rather lamely. At Roy's increasingly skeptical expression, she threw up her hands. "Roy, aren't your parents worried about where you are?"

He immediately shuffled his feet. Oliver, having observed the state of his clothes and heard Felicity's story, put two and two together.

"Do you have money for lunch this afternoon?" he asked abruptly. Felicity blinked at him, momentarily nonplussed, but he saw Diggle straighten up out of the corner of his eye. Roy stilled, then looked up with an even fiercer glare than before.

"I don't need your help," he retorted. 

Oliver was undeterred. "That doesn't sound like a yes."

The boy - he couldn't have been more than seven, only a year older than Thea - stayed silent, glowering. Then, suddenly: "I live in the Glades. That's Arrow territory.  _He's_  gonna help me out. I know he is." Mistaking the adults' surprise for disbelief, Roy forged on. "My friend said the Arrow will help anyone who needs it. He rescued her once, you know! I'm not some dumb kid!"

"No one thinks you're a dumb kid," Digg said. There didn't seem to be any other response to his outburst. 

Oliver met the gazes of his fellow teammates above Roy's head, where a silent decision was quickly reached. "C'mon. We were all heading out for lunch anyway." Technically not true, but an early lunch wouldn't be the end of the world. "You might as well tag along, and then I'll drop you off wherever you want to go."

Roy looked between him and Digg distrustfully for a moment. Then, with a quick glance at Felicity, he tugged his hood down. "Fine," he muttered. "Whatever."

Felicity beamed. As the four of them walked out, Oliver didn't miss how the kid hung close to her side. "What's the game plan?" Digg asked quietly as the two of them watched their favorite IT girl hold Roy's hand before crossing the street. 

"Honestly? I have no idea."

He really needed to find some Advil.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the positive support, I was honestly blown away!  
> I noticed a few of you asked about Roy's past, such as his parents. I promise that will all come up eventually. Also, the Glades are never characterized in much detail on the show, but I'm pretty sure it's reasonable to assume that homelessness and hunger are, if not rampant, at least present. If I've forgotten some part of canon that refutes this, please tell me!  
> I hope you all enjoy the update :)

Big Belly Burger was the obvious choice for lunch. Felicity slid into a booth and Roy hesitated for a moment before sliding in next to her. She snickered as Oliver struggled to situate his wide shoulders next to Digg's even wider frame on the narrow bench.

When the food came out, Roy only hesitated a moment before digging in. "Eat slowly," Oliver told him, remembering how he used to gorge himself on island prey after days of starvation just to throw it all up later, his stomach unsettled by the sudden appearance of food. Roy's now-familiar scowl made an appearance, but nevertheless, he obeyed. Something told Oliver he wasn't the type to listen to an order without knowing why he was given one, and the idea that this seven year old boy was already familiar with a lesson that Oliver had had to learn on Lian Yu made his jaw tighten. One sidelong glance at Diggle told him that the other man was feeling just as tense as he was.

Felicity, for her part, looked like she was regretting Oliver's choice to ask their waiter for a children's menu. She watched Roy for a few minutes, then slid her packet of fries over to his tray. He eyed it mistrustfully for a moment, but obviously the allure of extra food beat down his pride, since he devoured it soon thereafter.

It was Felicity's turn to settle the tab and she did so quickly, noticing how fidgety Roy had gotten now that all the food was gone. "Can we go?" he asked as soon as she finished signing the receipt.

"Yes," she responded, ushering him out of the booth. Oliver and Diggle unfolded themselves from their seats as well, again falling behind Felicity.

"Where do you want to go?" Digg asked Roy as soon as the quartet stepped out onto the sidewalk, reaching out to place a hand on his shoulder. Roy quickly ducked away from his touch. Digg paused and retracted his hand, face carefully neutral. 

"Just drop me off at 54th and Chestnut," the boy said, reciting a street corner in the Glades. His hands had balled up once again in his hoodie's pockets.

"What are you going to do?" Felicity said, trying not to sound too worried. Evidently she didn't succeed; Roy's shoulders hunched over.

"I dunno. I'll go to Sin's house. She can tell me stories about the vigilante."

Felicity mouthed, "Sin?" over his head at Digg, who shrugged. Oliver's expression was, if possible, stormier than before. 

The brief silence seemed to aggravate Roy. "Listen," he said roughly, "I don't even know you people. I know Sin, and I like her. I wanna go to 54th and Chestnut, and if you won't take me, I'll get there myself."

Oliver sighed, running a hand over his face. "Come on, then," he said. 

"Oliver - "

"He doesn't know us, and we don't know him, Felicity," he pointed out. Roy had already started toward the car. Digg watched his small form, arms crossed. "We might as well take him to where he feels safe."

She was tempted to point out that nowhere in the Glades was safe, but she knew she had no right to intervene in Roy's life. Besides, if Digg wasn't protesting, he agreed with Oliver, and she knew better than to argue the majority decision. "Fine," she muttered, following Roy. 

The drive to the Glades was a silent one. When the car stopped at its destination, Roy clambered out. For a moment it looked like he was going to head off without a backwards glance, but he turned back. "Thank you," he said, not meeting anyone's gaze.

Before she could fully comprehend what she was doing, Felicity pulled out a business card from her wallet and handed it to him. "My number is right there," she said, clasping his shoulder once more. "Please, call if you need anything."

He stared at the card before slowly pocketing it. "You're one crazy lady," he told her, looking up.

"Yeah, I know." She gave him one last smile.

After a moment, Roy pulled up his hood and started to run in the opposite direction. Digg only pulled away when he was out of sight.

* * *

Oliver seemed distant that night as he patrolled the streets of Starling. All was quiet in the city, meaning that usually there would be small talk over the comms between the three of them. That night, however, Oliver's heavy silence seemed unbreakable. 

"We're coming back," he said finally, voice gruff even under the voice modulator. "You sure you have nothing, Felicity?"

"All's good," she confirmed.

They didn't take long to return, but even with the whole team inside, the foundry remained silent. Digg came up beside Felicity, flicking a cursory glance over her computer screens before turning to face her more fully. His eyebrows rose, asking a silent question. She shook her head, just as confused as him.

The click of a bow sliding into its placeholder was their only warning before Oliver's harsh tone sounded behind them. "I failed him." They turned to look at him, but he was facing away from them, palms flat against the med table. "Roy. It's been five years and I haven't even made a dent. I haven't prevented his homelessness or his hunger. If I can't save a seven year old kid from the injustice of this city, what the hell  _can_  I do?"

"You're doing it again," Digg said, rolling his eyes. Oliver looked up. " _We._ We've been at this for five years, and we've all failed him. The Glades continuing to screw over its residents, children going hungry in the streets - that's on us, Oliver. Not just you."

Oliver gave a short, humorless laugh. "That's even worse. Three of us, and we can't save one guy. One  _boy_ , Digg. A seven year old. Barely older than Thea."

"Hey, I know. AJ is barely older than Roy is. But it's not like young age makes them easier to save."

"Statistically, Roy's an outlier. Crime has gone down and incomes have gone up in the past few years," Felicity couldn't help but interject. When Oliver still didn't turn around, she stood up. "We have to do better, I know we do, but we're making strides. It's been five years, yes, but Starling still needs so much more from us. You can't give up hope now. Not when we're still working to make the city a better place."

"He idolized the Arrow," he said after a pause, voice suddenly hollow. "He had so much faith in the vigilante, like one man could fix everything in his world."

"Who says you can't?" Digg replied.

Oliver finally spun around, expression more tired than Felicity had expected it to be. "It just... took me by surprise."

"That's what you mean to Starling," she said softly. "That's why we keep going."

He wordlessly held one arm out; she crossed the floor and hugged him, feeling his heartbeat beneath her cheek. His eyes met Digg's over her head.

"I'm going to head home, then," the latter man said after a few minutes of comfortable silence. "Lyla'll be pleased I'm actually in before midnight for once. You two alright?"

"Mm. Thanks, John. Say hi to Lyla for us," Felicity told him, and with a quick smile he was gone. "What do you say?" she added, looking up at Oliver. "My place?"

"Yeah." He shucked off his uniform, prompting a grin from her. Unable to keep a small smile off his own face, he slid into jeans and a t-shirt before kissing her. "Order in Thai?"

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

The next two weeks were busy, if uneventful. Felicity, now working in the technology sector of what was to become QC's new Applied Sciences branch, was part of a joint task force working to ready said branch for its rebranding. Digg was busy, as always, trying to take care of his one year old daughter Julia, keep up pretenses as Oliver Queen's bodyguard, and take nights off both to patrol Starling with the Arrow. Oliver, of course, was still trying to balance his job as CEO with his nighttime activities. But amidst board meetings, diaper changes, and late-night recons, each of the three found themselves wondering about Roy. 

"I don't know if we should have just dropped him off in the middle of nowhere," Digg had said a few days ago as he cleaned his pistol in the foundry.

"This has to be the fifth time you've said that," Oliver had replied mildly.

"Doesn't make it any less true," the other man had countered. Felicity, biting her lip, had said nothing.

Still, when the night's business was done and Oliver was on his motorcycle back to Verdant, he always couldn't help checking both 54th and Chestnut Streets thoroughly, unsure of what he was even looking for. Felicity, always tracking him on her computers, never said anything about it.

Even Lyla was interested in Roy. "I heard about him from John, of course," she'd said over dinner at the family's apartment. Oliver's fingers, entwined with Felicity's, had tightened for a moment. "All I have to say about the matter is that he's lucky Felicity was there in the supermarket."

Then, as she had looked over at Julia, sleeping in her crib, she'd added a quiet, "God knows what happened to his parents."

Felicity could have found out with a few well-placed computer searches, but for some reason she refrained. It felt more like an invasion of privacy than any attempt to help, and she knew that Roy, if they ever met again, would most likely never trust her again if she knew about his family without him telling her himself.

It was these thoughts that preoccupied her as she sat at her office desk, supposedly going over a report she had to hand in to the VP of her sector. Oliver and Digg, nonchalantly taking their lunch break in her office and talking animatedly about a mission in Halo that they had yet to beat, were paying no attention to her introspection. She shook herself out of her thoughts, shoved Oliver's foot off the edge of her desk, and picked up the sandwich they had brought her, joining the conversation with vigor. 

It was in the middle of a heated debate about Cortana that Felicity's cell phone rang. She rummaged through her purse with one hand, the other still gesticulating emphatically.

"Okay  _whatever_ , she's a talkative hacker, I obviously love her - Hello?" _  
_

For a moment she thought she had lost connection, but then there was a loud bang accompanied by yelling. "Felicity?" said her caller, voice quiet and trembling.

"Roy?" Blank shock took over for a split second; she barely registered Oliver and Digg straightening up, amusement forgotten. She recovered herself quickly enough to place the phone on speaker.

"Felicity, help, these people came over - "

"Where is she?" roared an entirely new voice over the line. " _Where's the Canary_ _?"_

"I don't  _fucking_ know!" screamed a female voice. "I don't even know who the fuck the Canary  _is_ \- " 

"You're  _lying_!" Then came another crash. Something shattered.

"Roy," Felicity said urgently, gripping the edge of her desk, "Roy, where are you?"

"Sin's," he responded, sounding terrified. Then -

"Is that kid on the phone?  _Get that kid off the phone._ "

The line disconnected.

Felicity looked up at Oliver and Digg. They were already out of their chairs, hard expressions on their faces. 

"I'm suiting up. It's all in the trunk, I can be at 54th in ten." Oliver pressed a kiss to her cheek and a comms unit into her palm. "Get to Verdant. Digg, coming with me?"

"Definitely."

Felicity grabbed her own keys and followed them out. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry about both the cliffhanger and the long time it took to update! Spring semester has just started for me so things are gonna be a little hectic. Thanks for all the wonderful support!

Roy tried his best to keep quiet as a blond man shoved him into the living room. He could see Sin crouching in the opposite corner, screaming at some other man despite her split lip. 

"I know she _isn't_  in Starling, I want to know where she  _is_ ," the other man yelled back, striking her across the face.  _  
_

"Hey! Leave her alone!" Roy shouted, struggling against the blond man's grip. The fist in his hoodie tightened, but otherwise everyone ignored him.

"I don't know," Sin repeated, sounding more frantic than angry. "She doesn't tell me where she's going, she just - "

"This is useless," said the man holding Roy. "She's just some stupid teenager who's gotten involved with big stuff she doesn't understand."

His companion scowled, then aimed a kick at Sin's ribs. "If you're not going to tell us anything, I might be forced to dispose of you. And you wouldn't want that, would you?"

"I think not," a new voice growled. An arrow whistled past Roy and embedded itself in its target; the man behind him howled and released his hoodie immediately. Another arrow landed in the thigh of the man terrorizing Sin, who fell to his knees cursing. "Who are you working for?" the Arrow demanded.

More expletives were the only response he got. A quick blow to the face had Sin's attacker knocked out; the man behind Roy was similarly dispatched. Another man in a ski mask came running into the house moments later.

"Perimeter's clear," he told the Arrow. "Looks like you cleaned things up in here, too."

"Cuff them to the streetlamp outside for Lance," the archer replied. "Can you contact him for us?" he added, seemingly to no one. Both he and the masked man nodded a moment later, and the latter hauled the two bodies outside while the Arrow kneeled down next to Sin. 

"Can you stand?" he asked, tone perhaps a little less angry than before.

She nodded her head but made no move to prove it. "Listen," she said, grasping his sleeve, "I've already contacted her. I'm going to try to tell her not to come to the city, but you have to tell her too. Leave me here, but take the kid." She met Roy's gaze over the Arrow's shoulder. "He needs more help than I do."

"Leave you here? I can take you back to the Foundry, you know we can - "

"No. I'm already associated with Sara. No offense, big guy, but I'd rather keep off at least _your_ enemies' radar."

There was a long pause before the Arrow wheeled around to survey Roy, who stood a little straighter. "Well," the vigilante said, almost in a sigh, "he's in deep enough already."

* * *

 

Felicity was starting to turn off a few of her non-essential electronics when the door to the Foundry banged open. Oliver's barely audible footsteps came down first, followed by Digg's much heavier footfalls. After them, however, came a hesitant shuffling. 

"Felicity?" Oliver still had the voice modulator on. "We're going to need some help."

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, she spotted the red hoodie hovering between them. "Roy?" She got up from her chair and hugged him, feeling him stiffen slightly before he relaxed. "You're not hurt, are you?" She looked up at the other two. "Who were they? Why are your masks still on?"

"Uh..." Digg turned to Oliver, who grimaced. "Secret identities?"

"He's  _seven_." 

"Yeah, and I'm not dumb." Roy shook Felicity off to face the Arrow. "If  _she's_ here, that means you're the big bodyguard. And under that ski mask, you're the mad blond guy."

"Well..." Felicity pushed back Oliver's hood. "The other way around, really."

"I'm flattered though, buddy," Digg added, taking off his ski mask. Oliver took off his own mask, looking a little taken aback.

Roy fidgeted for a moment before pushing back his own hood and approaching the rack of arrows on a nearby table. "Are these the exploding ones?" he asked, tone torn between trepidation and excitement.

"Uh, no." Oliver shot Felicity a helpless look. "They're just regular ones."

Roy's quickly growing enthusiasm wasn't dampened by that information. He moved to the case that normally housed the Arrow suit, expression of awe reflected in the glass. Felicity caught Digg's grin from the corner of her eye. 

"Why do you have so many computers down here?"

"I help Oliver and John when they're out in the field by getting information on these computers," Felicity explained. Roy looked intrigued, but as soon as Oliver started to take off his gloves and turn off the voice modulator, his attention flew to the suit. When Oliver started to unzip the jacket, Roy shuffled a little closer.

"They were looking for Sara," Oliver said. Despite turning off the modulator, his voice still sounded a little terse. "I don't know why, but they've figured out that Sin's associated with her. They seemed surprised to see me coming to her aid, though."

"So they didn't know that you and Sara are associates." A crease appeared in Digg's brow. "That's nearly impossible. It's not like you two fighting together is a secret."

"Either that, or they're just grunts," Oliver suggested. "They weren't very good at anything other than beating up defenseless citizens."

"Still, everyone in Starling knows that the Arrow and the Canary are allies." Felicity's eyes lit up. "Which means they're from out of town. Like, way out of town." She sat down in her seat, fingers already flying over the keyboards. "If you left them cuffed outside of the house and told the Captain, their arrest paperwork should be filtering into the SCPD database anytime now. I can figure out where they're from and try to link them to a larger organization. My bet is on Gotham or Metropolis; Central City and Coast City are too close to us to not know about you and Sara working together."

Digg settled on the corner of Felicity's desk. "We have to contact Sara," he said.

"Yes, Sin mentioned that." Oliver's gaze swept the Foundry, skipping over Roy. Felicity frowned a little. "I'll get on it."

"Knowing her, she's going to try to come back anyway," Digg continued, voice measured. "Do we want her to?"

"I'm not worried about her taking care of herself, but I don't want to use her as bait, either," Oliver replied. "Maybe we should figure out what these people want with her before we talk to her."

"That's going to take a while, and who knows what else they'll do to get to her in the meantime," Felicity pointed out.

"Besides, didn't you say that Sin's already trying to contact her?" Digg added.

Oliver ran a hand over his face. "Fine. I'll talk to Sara, see what she thinks we should do."

There was a pause followed by a loud crash. Roy looked up, startled. "I didn't mean to," he blurted out.

"It's just the fern," Felicity said, voice soothing. "Come on, help me clean it up, then you and I can repot it together, okay?"

Roy hurried after her, casting a worried glance behind him at Oliver and Digg before running up the stairs. When the door shut, Digg turned to the other man.

"What's up with you? You look like you're ready to go another round with Starling's worst."

Oliver shook his head, finally putting down his bow. "I don't want him down here."

"Why not? Worried about how often kids accidentally slip secrets?"

"No, but now I am."

Digg sighed. "Come on, man, what's really bothering you?"

Oliver's shoulders stayed hunched over for a few seconds longer before he dropped them. "A kid shouldn't be here," he said finally. 

"Roy has nowhere else to go. And even if he did, the people after Sara will now know that he's associated with both you and Sin. We can't let him wander around alone."

"Still, there has to be somewhere else we can put him. He can't know about this place, it was a mistake to even bring him here - "

"You know, I get the feeling that this is coming from the same place as your reluctance to let Julia down here," Digg interrupted, cocking an eyebrow.

Oliver growled. "Diggle. There's a lot of blood associated with this place. We can't just let anyone come down here, it could jeopardize everything we're working for."

"Your mission is to put the city to rights. You've been doing that with great success. Why does a kid finding out where you base yourself matter?"

"Because to this kid, I'm a symbol of good things!" Oliver struggled to moderate his tone. "That's what I am to Starling: a symbol. I can't... when I take off the mask, when I'm down here with you and Felicity, I become less than that. I become human. And when Roy talked about the Arrow, it gave him... it gave him hope. I can't give that to him if he knows who I am under the hood."

Digg considered him for a long moment. "Oliver, I've never understood your need to vilify yourself. You've always been - well, if not proud, at least invested in the work that you do as the Arrow. Why do you think that your alter ego is more important that the person you are underneath?"

"Because to the city, it is."

"Well, what about to you?" Digg sighed at Oliver's silence. "Maybe you should think of Roy as your opportunity to become someone he can look up to, both with the hood and without."

The door opened again, and Felicity's voice filled the room. " - so after we put in some more soil, the fern will be as good as new. Don't worry about it, okay?"

"Yeah, alright." Roy still sounded a little troubled, but his expression lightened up considerably when he spotted the bow lying on the table behind Oliver. "That is  _so cool_."

"Thanks, I designed it." Felicity looked over at the two men, quickly absorbing the heavy atmosphere between them before shooting a questioning look at Digg. He shook his head.

"We need to get back to the office," Oliver said abruptly to her. 

"Oh, that's right!" She quickly scooped up her phone and scrolled through the notifications, letting out a groan. "I have like a million people who need me to check in with them about the technology glitches that keep popping up in the - well, let's just go."

"Can I stay here?" Roy asked suddenly.

Oliver's eyebrows hiked up his forehead, but Digg jumped in. "If you want to. But I'll have to stay here with you."

"It would look fishy if I showed up without my ever-present bodyguard," Oliver tried, hedging.

"It would look even fishier if you showed up with a seven year old from the Glades," Digg shot back. "And we can't let him out of our sight."

Felicity picked up her purse. "Then it's settled."

Grumbling, Oliver picked up his suit from the med table and stalked toward the bathroom.

"He's not too happy about the no-kids rule being broken," Digg told Felicity in a quiet voice as they watched Roy edge closer to the bow.

Felicity sighed. "Of course he isn't."


End file.
